


Promise Keepers

by GentlyTornPromises



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Angst, Gen, blue lion route spoilers, but im avoiding it, i should be writing chapter four to my main story, is this platonic is it a ship who knows, listen, no beta we die like Glenn, sylvainst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-03
Updated: 2019-12-03
Packaged: 2021-02-18 12:41:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21660988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GentlyTornPromises/pseuds/GentlyTornPromises
Summary: War broke many things, but one thing it couldn't break was Felix and Sylvain's bond.
Relationships: Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert & Felix Hugo Fraldarius & Sylvain Jose Gautier, Felix Hugo Fraldarius & Sylvain Jose Gautier, Felix Hugo Fraldarius/Sylvain Jose Gautier
Comments: 2
Kudos: 20





	Promise Keepers

**Author's Note:**

> This is a sad fic and I hope you suffer reading it.

They’ve always had each other. Sylvain barely remembered life before Felix, and Felix hadn’t known a time before Sylvain. Their limbs grew lankier, Felix’s hair longer, and a sense of crushing duty found root in both of their chests. It was just second nature, instinct,  _ something _ that drove them to so easily seek the other out when there was a problem.

Frustration, heartbreak, anger, fear. If one was feeling it, the other was nearby, a tug in their being.

It wasn’t dislike a sunflower to the sun.

And when sunflowers failed to find the sun, they found each other instead.

That was much more comparable, in truth. It wasn’t a question for Sylvain to wait the extra few years to attend the academy. His presented aloof nature allowed him to fit in with the younger students anyways. It was just supposed to be a simple year. A last hurrah of togetherness for the four of them- for the pair of them.

But their monthly tasks grew increasingly questionable, increasingly more dangerous. Pride be damned, stubbornness thrown aside, the pair were often by the other’s side, to the point even their professor gave up trying to get them to work with anyone else. 

“Sylvain, watch it!” Felix heard the release of an arrow before he saw which direction it came from. Sylvain’s yelp was far from comforting, unease prickling in his hands, tightening his hold on the sword. A glance over his shoulder, a redhead still upright and startled, they both turned their attention towards the battle at hand. 

Favors like that was far from uncommon, exchanging heads up, or simply just knocking the other off their feet to avoid a surprise attack. It was hard to focus on so much at once, yet the divided attention rarely cost more than a sore shin.

Eventually Sylvain was promoted to a mounted unit and trotting  _ back _ from battles was a relief to Felix (if he didn’t have to walk, why would he? Battle was exhausting) but seeing that horse without its rider was always a shock to his system he loathed. 

On his knees, an enemy soldier above Felix was a sight that Sylvain loathed. Without hesitation he slid off his running horse and cut down the archer that thought Felix had been a  _ safe _ target to attack. The black beast boldered into the axe wielder and Sylvain grinned when he saw Felix grab the loose stirrups and pull himself onto the mount. He just barely missed the seated raven’s gaze finding him, attention pulled back to the fray in front of him, lance at his ready.

“Never do that again.”

“Do what?”

“Send me your horse.”

“Does someone’s pride hurt?” Sylvain laughed at the glower he received. “Calm down, Fe. I’m just as useful on the ground, y’know!”

“I know.” Felix pressed their backs together and remained silent for the remainder of the trek back to the monastery. Maybe one day he could voice  _ why _ he hated seeing the horse without Sylvain on it. That day wasn’t today.

Nor was it any other day leading up to the war.

It wasn’t even the day he saw that horse rear back then rush off and there was an awful,  _ awful _ sound of something hitting water. Perhaps fighting in close quarters with a horse hadn’t been the best choice on Byleth’s part, but Felix would find time to lament that another day. Right then he was more so focused on shoving the thief into the very same canal so he could  _ reach _ where Sylvain had no doubt been knocked into.

The water was cold, and his arm instantly felt heavy entering it. Pushing past that, he pushed further in, clothes quickly soaking and feeling weighted. A future problem, the current one was seeking blindly into the depths and seeking  _ something _ . 

Ashe had joined Felix by that point, and admittedly the swordsman was thankful. His hold felt weak, his pull not strong enough. But with help from the sniper, their missing redhead was dragged onto the ground, dragged back to air. Ashe’s attention turned to protecting the duo while Felix tried to pull the breastplate that was _in_ _his way_. The weight of his gloves made him clumsy, and prying them off wasted such important seconds. Fighting with them was frustrating, terrifying even. They still lost to Felix’s tiff with them, and Sylvain’s chestplate soon followed suit.

_ Air. _

Sylvain needed it. Felix pinched his nose and held his jaw. He could barely remember how long he was suppose to blow, how many beats he needed to push into Sylvain’s chest. Hell, he barely remembers Ashe’s voice tell him to back off a little. He does remember Dedue’s strong but sympathetic hold on him while Ashe replaced his frantic efforts to bring Sylvain back.

“He’s not allowed to die yet.” That voice couldn’t possibly belong to a Fraldarius, it sounded too desperate.

“He’s not dead yet.” Ashe placated, pushing on Sylvain’s chest then his gut then smiling when  _ finally _ the redhead sputtered and was pushed onto his side. Water and mucus was by far a better sight than the peacefully still Gautier. Felix slumped and Dedue let him slide to his ass, as if his duty was done. 

“Did we win?” Sylvain rasped and Felix lightly kicked at his friend.

“No thanks to you.”

They always had each other. Through thick and thin, good and bad, and bad, and bad- and every time the bad happened, they were reminded how fragile they truly were, how flimsy their promise was.

“Hey, do you remember that promise we made as kids?” Sylvain found himself saying as he mounted Dex and offered and arm to help Felix sit behind him.

“The one to die together?” Felix lifted a brow, feeling his weight being lifted by the redhead and settling behind the cavalier.

“Yeah.”

“What about it?” Now really didn’t seem to be the time, the sun was rising and they were headed to Enbarr for their final hurrah. They just needed to get through this awful day, then that promise wouldn’t seem so terrifyingly possible.

“Don’t keep it.” Sylvain must have felt how stiff Felix went, he quickly tacking on, “I don’t plan on dying today.”

_ Who did _ ? Ah, maybe Sylvain if it wasn’t the end of a long, painful war.

“I won’t let you die today, idiot.” Felix spat back, but Sylvain found comfort in the fact that Felix wasn’t as wound up against his back. Their words soon fell to silence when their King-to-Be and Byleth strode past, coming to the head of the army and gazing over what would become a bloodied field. They listened to the rally speech, steeling their minds, their hearts towards what’s to come.

But a heart isn’t ever truly steeled, is it?

They’ve always had each other. Sylvain barely remembered a time before Felix. Felix never knew a time without Sylvain. Their limbs were filled out, scarred, strong and yet so worn. Felix’s hair wasn’t so long anymore, but that hefty weight in their chests was slowly ebbing. 

Breathing was  _ difficult _ , Sylvain realized, it hurt and his breastplate felt far too heavy. He was only mildly aware of the heat in his side, his eyes staring towards a heaven he’d never see. Second nature, instinct,  _ something _ urged him to turn his head, and who was he to deny himself? A blur of teals and reds was fighting brilliantly, distractedly.

“Lix!” Sylvain found himself calling a warning, his hand pressing to that side that ached so  _ painfully _ . But, a moment too late, and crashing down Felix went. Sylvain felt a new ache build in his being, seeing Felix struggle to try and regain his footing only for another arrow to his leg. Felix’s scream motivated Sylvain to try and do  _ something _ . Moving was difficult, but he managed, they managed. Fingers wove together and Sylvain’s last strength went to pulling their bodies close, dragging Felix’s head and shoulders so they needn’t look up to find each other any longer. “.... Hey, Fe.”

“You’re an idiot.”

“I know.”

There was an earth shaking roar and both pairs of brown eyes squeezed shut.

“Did we win?”

“No thanks to you.” Felix hissed in pain and he tried to hold belief a healer would find them, find Sylvain, in time. 

“Fe….”

“I don’t wanna hear it.”

“I’ve got you.” Sylvain’s armored fingers found Felix’s hair. “Always.”

“Always.” Felix echoed, closing his eyes when he felt the hand in his hair go slack.

**Author's Note:**

> Someone yell at me to go write Love Song, Drug Song's next chapter for the love of sylvain.
> 
> This fic was inspired by the song Brother by Kodaline.


End file.
